Lighting: How Long Each Day?

[pnyf]

So I have a small (5 gallon) betta tank that I have planted with some java ferns and some java moss on the way and 2 plants that came from the big box pet store that I don't have names of. Currently I turn the light on between 6 and 7 am and leave it on all day until around 10 pm when I turn it off. The tank is in a room that is dimly lighted with no direct sunlight.
It is my understanding that this long amount of light is probably going to cause algae problems down the road. If I were to set the light to come on and off with a timer with several hours off in the middle of the day would this help the problem?
How long of a rest should I give? And would this in any way negatively effect the plants or the betta? 
thanks for the help.
 
Peter

 

[hobby5]

Too my understanding algae problems always occur when you have nutrition left which is not used by your plants and light does not matter so much. If you want to have a break 4h are recommended.

 

[Rob5]

I have my lights on a timer
 
7 hours a day from 3.00pm until 10.00pm

 

[dave840f1]

My lighting is also controlled by a timer, lights come on at 11.00 and go off at 22.30, plants are doing well and no algae problems. I do add plant food a couple of times a week (Sera) in liquid form and the large plants with a tablet one every two weeks.

 

[Shelster]

Mine are on for just seven hours in my betta tank also.

 

[Ch4rlie]

7 hours for my tanks too, from 14:30 to 21:30, very slight algae most due to reflected sunlight but easily controllable.

 

[daizeUK]

Too my understanding algae problems always occur when you have nutrition left which is not used by your plants and light does not matter so much. If you want to have a break 4h are recommended.

 
This is the exact opposite of my understanding, algae is caused primarily by excess lighting.  Have a look here http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/298133-back-to-basics/

 

[levahe]

Yes its high light intensity that causes problems - too much light.

  
If your lighting is too bright you are very likely to have algae problems even if you only have them on for 6 hours. 
More subdued lighting works best for planted tanks, if you start injecting co2 and adding lots of ferts then you might want to increase the intensity a little bit, but still you don't want them to be too bright.
Unfortunately a lot of aquarium manufacturers include lighting thats too bright because they want it to look nice and bright and attractive for the new aquarium owner.

 

[pnyf]

So what's the best way to split the light up if I'd like to enjoy my tank in the morning and the evening when I'm home. Or am I better off just setting it up so the lights are on in the evening?

 

[hobby5]

 

Too my understanding algae problems always occur when you have nutrition left which is not used by your plants and light does not matter so much. If you want to have a break 4h are recommended.

 
This is the exact opposite of my understanding, algae is caused primarily by excess lighting.  Have a look here http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/298133-back-to-basics/
 

Sorry, but read your link again. High light is often causing problems with algae because people fail to to provide all the nutritions for the plants in the right composition. IE there may be a shortage of CO2 while there is still plenty of all other, then algae still can grow but your plants cannot. Maybe it is better to talk about an imbalance in nutrions. But high light per se is not causing algae, they still need nutritions to grow on.
 
@Peter
You are totally free, but keep the break (if u decide to have one) to a minimum of 4h. This will allow your plants to go through a dark cycle. And remeber if you want your plants to grow they need light. I light my tank for 15-16 h each day and got no problem with algae.

 

[daizeUK]

Tom Barr showed that excess nutrients do not cause algae and this formed the principle for EI dosing.  Certainly the algae will utilise excess nutrients but they does not cause algae, otherwise EI would never work.  Thus the problem is having too much light for the amount of nutrients you are adding, which causes unhealthy plants which in turn allows algae to take hold.

 

[hobby5]

Tom Barr showed that excess nutrients do not cause algae and this formed the principle for EI dosing.  Certainly the algae will utilise excess nutrients but they does not cause algae, otherwise EI would never work.  Thus the problem is having too much light for the amount of nutrients you are adding, which causes unhealthy plants which in turn allows algae to take hold.

Do u have a link for that please? Of course u will need light for algae to grow, but without nutrients they cannot grow.
Too much light on its own will not cause algae.

 

[three-fingers]

Indeed, every single EI dosed tank proves this point. EI tanks have much excess of every nutrient that plants need, nitrate phosphate and everything else are maintained at high levels through daily dosing.  Successful EI dosed tanks will always have adequate flow and the correct level of lighting for that particular tank.
 
Heres a good article: http/www.aquariumalgae.blogspot.co.uk/  Although Tom Barr probably has an article somewhere, there's loads of forum posts he's made I cant link to if you do a search .
 
If your tank has more algae than you are comfortable with the usual causes are too much light or not enough flow. Since its a small betta tank we're talking about, improving flow isn't really an option.  You can reduce lighting times using a timer, or just switch to less powerful lights.  The betta may be confused at first but will probably adapt. Personally I don't like to use this method as I feel it may mess with the fish a bit...but I've not really researched into it. If I kept the tanks in a bright room I might do it though. Many people do on planted tanks with algae issues or just when they are at work, they call it giving the tank a "siesta" lol.
 
Every tank is different, but we need some info on the light type or wattage over this 5gal. If its a weak light you may get away without reducing the lighting times, if its a powerful light reducing light times may not be nearly enough! Depending on the fitting, you could also put something over the lamp to reduce the light.

 

[levahe]

The idea that excess nutrients causes algae is old out of date info and is incorrect,
Check out this algae guide,


http/www.theplantedtank.co.uk/algae.htm

 

[pnyf]

The tank came with a light that has 2 rows of LED lights. Other than that I don't know too much about it. It seems bright
I think I'll get a timer and start by cutting down the amount of time I have the light on and go from there.